Consoled

Chen Waan felt like some kind of ice melted in her heart. Had she been looking for this apology all this while? Was it why her soul felt so much lighter? But then, was she not the one who approached him first?

If she said something now, or replied to his apology, it might become an issue later, especially if Wang Zenghao was planning to reveal that she was indeed with Mo Yifan that night and all that was just a ruse. Given his schemes, it was highly possible he would do something like that. If she were to look at it rationally, revealing the truth would tie all the loose ends at once.

Chen Waan could do nothing else but nod. "That is very generous of you Mr. Mo," she gave a curt reply, neither accepting nor rejecting his apology. Mo Yifan's lips turned up into a brief smile. This girl, she knew how to take care of difficult situations, eh?

Rest of the question answer session went very well. Then came the signing session. All the hundred or so people formed a line and got to meet Mo Yifan, give him gifts and get an autograph. The small hall burst into exciting murmurs.

Mo Yifan asked Chen Waan to stay for she was multilingual. She could translate many people's messages to him, if not all. Chen Waan was not ready for this. What if someone recognized her? she knew she looked different with the make-up but this was a difficult request.

She looked around the crowd. It was just hundred people, right? She should be able to handle it. She stood beside the man to hear what the person before him was saying. It had become quite noisy as the people waited for their turns. A few were familiar faces to Mo Yifan apparently.

"Fan Fan, I brought you this stuffed doll, can I please have a picture with it?" the first girl came up to the platform and gave a cute bunny to Mo Yifan. The number of people on the raised stage was limited to one for easy communication and security purposes. The system was quite neat, Chen Waan felt.

He gratefully accepted it and was about to hand it over to Wang Zibo behind but Chen Waan translated for him the Japanese.

He halted and nodded to the fan. She took a picture and shook his hands. After getting his autograph, she happily left. And other fans continued coming and going, a few not being able to even convey their messages out of shyness, one or two even fainting.

At this time, a girl in a hoodie came on the stage. She had hidden her face behind a mask.

"Hello Fan Fan, I present to you this toy that I personally made," she handed over an eerily detailed figurine of himself. Chen Waan was able to translate what the girl just said, so she whispered the same in his ear, "she made it herself."

"Oh my! This resembles me exactly. I am very thankful!" Mo Yifan gasped in surprise and looked at the doll a few more times. The outfit belonged was the same as what he had worn for his debut. Even the earrings were the same, this girl had put quite some time and details in there.

"Are you happy, Fan Fan?" the girl asked creepily, her eyes a bit sinister. Chen Waan did not have a good feeling about this. But she did not want to doubt anyone, just because of their appearance. Who knew what kind of comfort his songs brought to someone?

Mo Yifan looked at the girl before him and then gave his perfunctory smile, "Yes, of course! You must have put quite some effort in making it. I cannot thank you enough."

"Oh, well. Thank you for the high praise then. I shall take my leave," the girl's aura completely changed when she saw how the man was cherishing her gift. She left happily, without even taking his autograph.

"Take her details, and send her an autograph later," he instructed Wang Zibo. On the side, Chen Waan heaved a sigh of relief. She had felt some danger just now for some reason. She did not know if it was from that girl or from someone else.

A man came on the podium next.

"Fan Fan, I am so glad to have met you. You are my inspiration. I love you to the core! Thanks to your songs, I had enough courage to come out of closet. Now I am openly gay!" the guy said very excitedly. He had clasped his hands with Mo Yifan and was jumping up and down.

Mo Yifan smiled once again, "I am glad you are free now."

The guy stopped in his tracks. "Free? Free? Your songs teach to accept ourselves but none says anything about dealing with the scorn of the society. I did take the step and now I am shunned and outcasted by everyone. What am I supposed to do about that?" the guy, who was ecstatic just now, suddenly yelled and started crying. He cried for solid two minutes, everyone staring at him weirdly.

Only Mo Yifan kept holding his hands and patted them in between. When the fan calmed down, then only he stood up and patted his shoulders. "When you have courage to accept yourself, you should also have courage to live through it. You made a choice, not there is no way to regret it. You will have to live with the consequences. I shall be here to support you," he consoled the person.

"Tha-thank you! I am sorry for screaming at you earlier," the guy wiped his face with the tissue that Mo Yifan had just handed him over.

"No, you should be proud that you were able to express yourself completely. I wish you good luck from now on," he handed his autograph to him and directed him towards the exit.

Chen Waan had a newfound respect for the idol. He had to deal with so many people from different background, but he was just so composed and compassionate towards the cause of others. She had still much to learn from him it seemed.

"Oof! I am tired. Let's take a five minute break," Mo Yifan sat down in his seat with a thud. He had a concert later, he could not strain his voice much. Why did he agree to do both in a day, was he mad or something?

Wang Zibo instantly brought some hot soup for him. He handed over a bowl to Chen Waan too. "Recharge yourself, it's going to be a long long day."

Chen Waan accepted it, looking at the slopped shoulders of Mo Yifan who was visibly tired. Her thoughts also diverted to the fact that the company was working him like a slave. The whole past month had gone by in a blink but she had not seen him going on those crazy scheduled she had heard the idols usually go to.

She had attributed it to the fact that he was much popular and could relax a bit. But today was an opener for her. She would be doing the same in the future, right?